Solenoid operated shutoff valves are widely utilized in a variety of applications such as aerospace, scientific and commercial industries. Many types of such valves have shortcomings that limit improvements in their power consumption, operating time, weight, envelope package configuration and versatility. The use of typical pintel, poppet or pilot operated arrangements for solenoid operated valves requires relatively long strokes for valve actuation, i.e., opening or closing function. A long stroke length requires a relatively large solenoid, resulting in a larger envelope and increased weight and power consumption. A long stroke length also typically results in a long valve actuation time.
The internal arrangement of the components in conventional solenoid operated valves also mandates large fluid passageways to minimize fluid pressure drop. This contributes to larger valve envelopes and greater weights. Envelope requirements, typically directed to make the valve as small as possible, commonly imposed on conventional designs further complicate the addition of features such as pressure relief and flow limitation.